Distillation apparatus



April 9 F. e. RING 1,802,274

I DISTILLATION APPARATUS Filed Sept. 19, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet J,

April 21,1931. F. G. RING DISTILLATION APPARATUS Filed Sept. 19, 1925 4 SheetsSheet 2 1 fi W llw A--- 11;; A--- gwugutoz 7 7 Mh A ril" 21, 1931.

G. RING DISTILLATION APPARATUS Filed Sept. 19, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 inmw war

avwewcoz Hwhnnrrrr April 21, 1931. F. G. RING DISTILLATION APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Sept. 19, 1925 awvmtoz Patented Apr. 21, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FREDERICK G. RING, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO PETROLEUM DERIVATIVES INCORPORATED, OF MAINE, A CORPORATION OF MAINE DISTILLATION APPARATUS Application filed September 19, 1925. Serial No. 57,262.

This invention relates to distillation appas ratus and pertains more particularly to apparatus adapted for the continuous distillation of hydrocarbons.

It is an object of this invention to provide an apparatus which shall be simple in construction and economical in operation.

Other obj ects. and advantages of the invention will appear hereinafter.

A preferred embodiment of the invention selected for purposes of illustration is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the apparatus, certain parts beingbroken away to better illustrate the construction and operation thereof,

Figure 2 is a top plan view,

' Figure 3 is a section on the line 33 of Figure 4,

Figure 4 is an end elevation, certainparts being broken away to better illustrate the construction and operation.

In the embodiment of the invention disclosed herein, it is proposedto provide a continuous flow of oil from suitable supply tanks or containers to residue receivers, and to sup-. ply heat to the oil in transit in sufficient quantity to cause vaporization as desired. For this purpose the conduits through which the oil travels are exposed to a current of heated gases flowing for the most part, in the present embodiment, in a direction contra to the direction of flow of the oil. As will be explained more in detail hereinafter, the vapors evolved by the application of heat may be removed from the still at various points along the course of the oil stream and may be passed to. suitable condensing apparatus and collected in receiver tanks. It may be convenient for purposes of the present description to first describe what may be called the furnace construction, and to trace the course of the hot gases therethrough, after which the course of the oil and of the vapors evolved by the application of heat may be traced.

Referring to the drawings, and more par ticularly to Figures 3 and 4, thefurnace comprises a combustion chamber 1 into which may be introduced through the opening 2 a suitable nozzle or battery of nozzles of usual construction for burning oil as a sourceof heat. The

combustion chamber 1 is divided by means of a bridgewall 3 to form a second chamber 4 for purposes described in detail hereinafter. The chamber 4 is connected by means of a passage 5 with a vertical flue 6 which extends upwardly throughout the entire height of the furnace. Extending laterally through the side faces of the flue 6 are a plurality of passages 7 on one side thereof, and passages 8 on the opposite side, which permit the escape of the hot gases passing upwardly through of heat is transferred to the oil in the conduits arranged therein. The spent or cooled gases pass from the heating chambers 9 through the passages 11 to a vertical flue 12. In a similar mannerthe gases passing to the heating chambers through the passages 8 pass lengthwise through heating chambers 10, give up some of their heat to the oil in the conduits and pass from the heating chambers 10 through the passages 13 to a flue 14. If desired, each of the passages 7 8, 11 and 13 may be provided with dampers 8 and 13 and corresponding ones in the other passages to control the flow of the hot gases to and from the heating chambers, in order that. these chambers may be maintained at a proper.

temperature at all times. 7

As the spent gases emerging from the still through the flues 12 and 14 still retain a con-- siderable amount of heat, it has been found economical to pass these gases through a chamber 17 in which are arranged conduits or coils containing oil to be fed to the still so that theincoming oil may be preheated by the spent gases, whereby it becomes unnecessary to apply so great a quantity of heat within the still proper. For this purpose the fluesl2 and 14 are connected by horizontal flues 15 and 16 with the chamber 17 in which are arranged conduits containing the in:

coming oil. The 1 ener'ging from the chamber 17 are then passed downwardly through the flue 18 and are driven upwardly through the stack 19 by me of a blower 20.

Inasmuch as the of comb formed in the combustion chan'iber 1 are frequently of higher tenniierature than is desirable to apply to the conduits containing the oil, it has been found advisable under ce conditions to introduce cooler -1scs for n11 ture with the of comb )1] to thereby reduce to the desired degree L temperature of the gases passing to the h ng chambers.

For this purpose it has be found OCO110llical to return, for mixture w i the gases of combustion, spent gases whicn ive already passed through the still. It has been found desirable in order to secure pro mixing of the gases of different temperature, to introduce the cooler gases immedi: behind the right angles to the directic hot gases. In the pres a or c duit 21 may receive some of th s and passing through this header 22 the spent gases in through a plurality of non second chamber at which for c be called a mixing chamber w with the ga of combustion to perature of the same. For con iience in controlling the amount of spent .ses returned to the mixing chamber the dampers Q3 and-24 may be provided, which may be adjusted in any suitable manner.

The walls of the furnace may be built of any suitable material. It has been found convenient to build up the we ls in layers or courses of suitable resistance n'iaterial such as fire bricl: for example and if des ed, the outside walls may be covered with a s .itable insulating material.

The oil to be treated may be stored in large tanks 31 from which it may be pumped by a pump 32 through the conduit 33 to the coil arranged in the interior of the chamber 1? previously described. During its passage through the coil 34 the oil is m tained under pressure by the pump 32 and is condition absorbs heat from the hot. ga es passing through the chamber 17. The end of the coil 34 is connected to a conduit which discharges into a. separator chamber 36, the valve 37 being interposed in the conduit 85, by which the flow of oil may be controlled.

I It has been found desirable to prevent material condensation within the separator chamber 36 in order that substantially all of the oil which is vaporized may be removed for condensation and in order to eliminate diff? culty from spewing which lPl; it result if the condensed liquid subsequent mixed with the hot unvaporized liquid r .ue. Accordingly, in the present embodiment it has been found to be advantageous to mount the separator chamber 36 in the interior of the flue 18 previously described in order that the spent passing through the flue and surrounding the separator 36 may maintain the walls of the chamber at a. temperature sullicient to prevent material condensation therein. In the course of ordinary operation the spent gases passing the flue 18 will be at a temperature in excess of the temperature of condensation of the least volatile of the vapors evolved in the separator chamber in which case, of course, no condensation will take place; in any case, however, the temperature of the gases will be suliicient to prevent any material condensation inside of the chamber.

In order to still further provide againstcondensation on the interior of the separator chamber, the tubes 38 may be provided passing lengthwise through the separator chamber, said tubes being open at each end to permit the passage of the flue gases therethrough.

Leading from a point near the top of the separator chamber is a conduit 39 connected to :1 condenser 4-0 and vacuum pump 41, which pump serves to draw oil the vapors evolved when the heaterL oil is discharged into the separator chamber and also serves to maintain sub-atmospheric pressure therein.

he temperature of the coil 34, the rate of flow of oil therethrough and the degree of vacuum maintained by the pump 41 may be adjusted as desired in order that vapors of the desired characteristics may be removed from the still through the conduit 39. In general, however, it is desirable only to remove the lighter fractions at this point, such for instance, as the gasoline, kerosene and gas oil fractions. It has been found, as a specific example, that if the oil in the coil attains a temperature of between three hundred and four hundred degrees Fahrenheit in the chamber 17 and that if an absolute pressure of between twenty-five and one hundred millimeters mercury is maintained in the separator, the desired separation will take place and a residue of lubricating fractions will remain for further treatment in the other part of the still.

It has also been found. desirable, in order to prevent spewing in the separator chamber 36, to remove the liquid residue from the bot tom of the separator as rapidly as it is received in order to prevent any quantity or pool of oil from collecting at the bottom thereof. Accordingly, the conduit 42 is provided at the bottom of the SQl HII'EIlJOI leading to a pump 43 which should be of a capacity to remove the liquid residue as rapidly as received.

After passing through the pump 43 the liquid passes through the conduit 44: to a header 45 from which the oil flows through a plurality of conduits to back and forth through the heating chambers 9 previously described.

The conduits 46 are connected at their ends by the headers 47 and 48 and the headers 48 are provided with vapor ofl-takes 52 through which thevapors evolved may be withdrawn to suitable condensing apparatus.

It is to be understood that the rate of flow of the oil through the conduits 46 is such as to maintain only a thin stream or film of oil at the bottom of the conduits, the remaining space being open for the free flow of vapors in the direction of least pressure. The entire system may be maintained under a high vacuum as for example at an absolute pressure of twenty-five millimeters or less by means of vacuum pumps, not shown, connected to the system through the condensers and Vapor outlets.

After flowing through the conduits 46 on one side of the still the oil is pumped through the conduit 53 to the header 54 on the other side of the still whence it flows through conduits 49 back and forth through the heating chambers to the bottom header 50 from which the residue flows through the conduit 51 to any suitable residue receiver. The vapors evolved on thisside of the still may be removed through the outlets 52 in a similar manner to those on the other side of the still.

In order that the stream of oil flowing through the conduits may not become too small as the volume of the oil is reduced by the evolution of vapors, the number of conduits may be reduced as the oil flows through the still. For instance, as illustrated, a bank and this number is progressively reduced to a bank of four conduits, thento a bank of three conduits and'finally it is reduced to two conduits.

It is to be understood that the invention may be variously modified and embodied within the scope of the subjoined claims.

I claim as my invention: 1 I

1. In a still of the character described having a preheater, a separator having an outlet for vapors near the upper end and an outlet for liquid near the lowerend thereof, anda series of conduits forming the main section of the still, in combination, a combustion chamber, and means providing a continuous passage-for the gases of combustion from said combustion chamber, successively through the main section of the still, through the preheater and through the separator, whereby the said elements are subjected to progressively decreasing temperatures in the order last named.

2. In a still of the character described having a preheater, a separator, and a series of.

- September, 1925. of six conduits are provided at the beginning o the separator, whereby the said elements are subjected to progressively decreasing temperatures in the order last named, and means for returning some of the spent gases to said passage before it enters the main section of thestill. 7

3. In a furnace of the character described, in combination, a combustion chamber, a single flue connected therewith, a plurality of series of heating chambers, said flue being provided with lateral openings affording communication between said flue and the various heating chambers of each series, a separate escape flue for each series of heating chambers, said flues being also provided with lateral openings affording communication be- Jtlween said chambers and their respective ues.

4. In a furnace of the character described, in combination, a combustion chamber, a single flue connected therewith, a plurality of series of heating chambers, said flue being providedwith lateral openings affording communicationbetween said flue and the various heating chambers of each series, a separate escape flue for each series of heating chambers, said flues being also provided with lateral openings affording communication between said chambers and their respective flues, and means for connecting the outlet ends of said escape fiues to a common outlet.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification this 17th day of FREDERICK G. RING. 

